
Minnesota Sea Grant Aquaculture Extension Associate Kieran Smith works in the MNSG Yellow Perch lab in the UMN MAISRC Containment Laboratory in St. Paul (Image: Amy Schrank/MNSG); Research Staff Engineer Matt Young carries biochar materials at NRRI’s facility in Coleraine (Image: NRRI). Both NRRI and Minnesota Sea Grant perform research into Minnesota’s natural resources and economy, and both will benefit from a new connection to the University’s Research and Innovation Office.
The Natural Resources Research Institute (NRRI) and Minnesota Sea Grant (MNSG), two well-known organizations within the University of Minnesota, recently formalized new relationships with the University’s Research and Innovation Office (RIO) for strategic support and resources that will help grow their sponsored research programs and partnerships.
Both NRRI and MNSG have significant ties to and presence at the University of Minnesota Duluth (UMD), and both will continue to report to UMD. The new formalized partnership with RIO will provide them with enhanced support for obtaining and executing externally sponsored research projects, strategic guidance on potential partnerships, alignment with UMN systemwide priorities, and more direct access to UMN systemwide offices responsible for government and corporate relations.
“Both NRRI and Minnesota Sea Grant are poised for accelerated growth, and this formal relationship will help them leverage the knowledge, experience, services, and connections RIO has as a systemwide office. RIO will identify and facilitate new research collaboration opportunities with the researchers at University’s Twin Cities campus, which is among the top public R1 research campuses in the US, to go after large-team funding opportunities,” said Shashank Priya, UMN vice president for research and innovation. “We want to assist in establishing high-impact research projects and academic programs that will attract undergraduate and graduate students, postdocs, and faculty to UMD.”
“These partnerships within the University of Minnesota System will help UMD grow and thrive in key aspects of our mission,” said UMD Interim Executive Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs Rebecca Ropers. “More research and community outreach at NRRI and MNSG will create more opportunities for UMD students and faculty to take part in research projects while growing our knowledge base around the natural resources that are so vital to Northeast Minnesota’s economy and identity.”
NRRI: Delivering Integrated Research Solutions for a Sustainable Future

Established by the legislature in 1983, NRRI’s researchers have decades of experience in geological mapping, ferrous and non-ferrous mineral processing and metallurgy, forestry, forest products and bioeconomy development, and long-term monitoring, remediation, and management of aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems.
Today, NRRI is partnering with the National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL) in Golden, CO, to initiate an effort to plan, build and operate a green energy-green iron production facility on the Iron Range. NRRI is doing so in partnership with other national labs, industry partners, public agencies, tribal governments, and local communities. The project will use renewable energy for both hydrogen and direct reduced iron production. In the future, green iron production can be coupled with other hard-to-decarbonize industries, such as cement and concrete, renewable fuels, and fertilizer in Minnesota.
“This alignment with RIO will amplify NRRI’s research impact on the state, national, and global levels,” said Rolf Weberg, executive director of NRRI. “It also recognizes the important role we play for UMD’s unique academic goals and regional impacts.”
MNSG: Advancing Water Science

MNSG is a systemwide program of the University of Minnesota making the University one of 34 Sea Grant institutions nationwide under the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). It has an expanding portfolio of water-related research and outreach in Duluth, the Twin Cities, the Great Lakes region, and nationally in support of NOAA’s National Sea Grant focus areas of Healthy Coastal Ecosystems, Sustainable Fisheries and Aquaculture, Resilient Communities and Economies, and Environmental Literacy and Workforce Development.
“Minnesota Sea Grant serves Minnesotans who need water science. We provide accessible research data to industry leaders, policymakers, educators, community organizations, municipal governments, university stakeholders, and Minnesotans of all ages,” said MNSG Director John Downing. “It’s an exciting time for water resources in Minnesota, and having more direct access to UMN research expertise and resources will help MNSG meet those growing needs.”
Strengthening Systemwide Collaboration
According to Kim Kirkpatrick, UMN associate vice president for research and innovation, and the point person at RIO for the new strengthened relationships, NRRI and MNSG will be better positioned to collaborate and integrate with other University research groups and centers.
“RIO has already been working with NRRI and MNSG but this more formalized relationship will increase our ability to provide access to systemwide resources to help grow their research portfolios,” she said. “And that growth will help to attract talent to UMD and Northeast Minnesota.”